Announcements

Today, building owners and designers are looking to minimize the energy and carbon footprint of new and existing buildings. LEED V4 and the Architecture 2030 Challenge are pushing the industry beyond energy efficiency features into on-site renewable energy generation. Join Taylor Brown and Devin Welch from Sun Tribe Solar, a Charlottesville-based solar energy company, as they discuss renewable trends and design best practices. Come learn more about solar photovoltaics, battery storage options, and Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) from leaders in the field.

Taylor Brown co-founded Sun Tribe Solar to increase solar PV’s market share on the east coast and is now operating as the Technical Director. Before launching Sun Tribe, Brown worked for Siemens Energy North America. For the first five years with Siemens, Brown was a field project manager performing modernizations and upgrades on steam turbine generators ranging from 150 MW to 920 MW throughout the United States. Brown holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Tech.

Devin Welch, co-founder, is also responsible for market strategy at Sun Tribe Solar. Passionate about sustainability, Welch has spent his career championing free market principles as a means to achieve positive change across a broad range of environmental issues, with a focus on finding and capitalizing upon the critical intersections of sustainable best practices and corporate self-interest. At Sun Tribe, Welch continues his work on market transformation by engaging with individuals, businesses, and governments to reimagine the way energy is produced while realizing tangible benefits for all stakeholders. As a member of the leadership team, he has helped Sun Tribe to become one of the fastest growing solar companies in Virginia. Welch is a published author and holds a B.S. in Management from Virginia Tech.

Water issues such as drought, infrastructure failure, and restrictions on use are things we have all gotten used to hearing but often don’t consider further. The truth is that globally our thirst for water is increasing at an alarming rate with no end in sight. The reality is that only 2.5% of the earth’s water is freshwater and half of that is tied up in glaciers and ice caps. Water reuse is a viable solution to the water issues facing us all. Understanding how to apply basic principles of water reuse planning and system application will ensure we have enough water for generations.

The march of technology has brought buildings that generate just as much power as they annually consume (Net Zero Energy) really close to the mainstream. A team of professionals are developing a roadmap for builders, owners, and designers to make it easier to take the leap to Zero.

Steve has long been deeply involved in advancing the building community’s understanding of stewardship, conservation, health, and wellness. For his efforts, he was awarded the distinction of LEED Fellow, by the Unites States Green Building Council in 2015. Recently, he has been active working with doctors and public health researchers to integrate evidence-based health strategies into the built environment.

The way that we design and construct the built environment is often split apart into what seem to be somewhat unrelated disciplines. There is one big problem with that approach: everything is connected. How do we make sense of the complex ways that the design of the building itself affects the site that it sits on, the social fabric around it and in turn the rest of the world? Join us this month as Leidy Klotz helps us take a step back to see the bigger picture by thinking in “systems”: merging design and behavioral science for a more sustainable and resilient built environment.

Our speaker this month is Leidy Klotz: professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture at the University of Virginia focusing on how connected design thinking creates a healthier, resilient and socially equitable built environment. He has recently published the engaging book: “Sustainability through Soccer: An Unexpected Approach to Saving Our World”

The motivations and barriers that schools confront in considering green school practices will be discussed. Recent research supports the aims of green schools—reduced environmental impact, positive impact on health and wellness, and increased sustainability and environmental literacy—and is helping to make the case for action. Mrs. Heming will present the most current research alongside examples of successful schools who are making changes to building, operating, and teaching practices.

This luncheon will be held at City Space, 100 5th St. NE, on the Downtown Mall, Charlottesville, VA. Doors open at 11:45 and the Seminar begins at 12:00. Luncheons are open to the public. Lunch is provided, attendance is free for GVGBC members and $10 for non members. Register Here

Ever wonder what your LEED reviewer really wants you to know? Join two of GBCI’s most experienced LEED energy/HVAC Reviewers for an overview of the LEED v4 rating system changes and submittal tips.

As of October 31, 2016, all projects pursuing LEED Certification are required to register under the LEED v4 rating system. Is your project team ready for the LEED v4 EA and IEQ HVAC/energy related credits? This presentation will explore key changes between LEED v4 and LEED v2009 credits, and provide tips from experienced GBCI LEED Reviewers for documenting compliance with LEED BD+C and ID+C requirements in LEED v4 projects. Similarities and differences between rating systems will be explored including the new credit, Integrative Process. The presentation will be followed with a Q+A session.

Learning Objectives

Describe the major changes in the BD&C rating system from the v2009 version to the v4 version for energy/HVAC related credits.

State the ASHRAE Standards required by LEED v4 and the prerequisites and credits these Standards affect.

How do you ensure that a city remains a place where people with varying incomes can still afford housing during huge re-investment and skyrocketing expenses? Former City Mayor Dave Norris and Charlottesville’s Housing Program Coordinator Stacy Pethia discuss creative ways of building a city where everyone can afford to live and work.

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This luncheon will be held at City Space, 100 5th St. NE, on the Downtown Mall, Charlottesville, VA. Doors open at 11:45 and the Seminar begins at 12:00. Luncheons are open to the public. Lunch is provided, attendance is free for GVGBC members and $10 for non members.

Crozet, Virginia is becoming a vibrant, bustling, livable and walkable center. Within walking distance of all the amenities that this growing town has to offer in the heart of an existing neighborhood is the possibility of yet another community that shifts the focus away from the personal automobile to personal interaction. Click here to see the full design.

If you want to live here, invest in the concept, or help make it a reality please contact us.

We hear a lot about industry leading net-zero energy and net-zero water schools happening in progressive communities around the globe, but we don’t hear as much about what’s happening with green schools here in the Mid-Atlantic. Local professionals will provide an update on net-zero energy and net-zero water schools in Virginia and Maryland. The interactive presentation will include a discussion of regional green school efforts and what challenges, and opportunities, lie ahead in the future.

This luncheon will be held at City Space, 100 5th St. NE, on the Downtown Mall, Charlottesville, VA. Doors open at 11:45 and the Seminar begins at 12:00. Luncheons are open to the public. Lunch is provided, attendance is free for GVGBC members and $10 for non members. Register Here

On January 10th, Dr. Matthew Trowbridge, Associate Professor in the UVA School of Medicine’s Department of Emergency Medicine and Director of the UVA-USGBC Green Health Partnership will discuss his work to simulate application of an integrative process to advance public health and well-being outcomes in the context of building design and construction. The Green Health Partnership seeks to answer the question “How might we establish a culture of health by creating healthy places, together? By applying green building principles of market transformation to promote healthy places, the partnership looks to better define the value proposition for health promotion within the built environment, develop tools for building and public health practitioners to create healthy places, and build technical capacity to apply health promotion tools. Work towards these goals includes the development of frameworks, such as a LEED v4 pilot credit – Integrated Process for Health Promotion, training and workshops, partnerships such as with Enterprise Green Communities and GreenStar Australia, and market development through engagement with real estate investors and GRESB.

Dr. Trowbridge will be joined by Julia Monteith, UVA’s Senior Land Use Planner and Andrea Trimble, UVA’s Sustainability Director, who will discuss the application of research work in relation to UVA’s on-Grounds planning, design, construction, and broader sustainability initiatives.

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This luncheon will be held at City Space, 100 5th St. NE, on the Downtown Mall, Charlottesville, VA. Doors open at 11:45 and the Seminar begins at 12:00. Luncheons are open to the public. Lunch is provided, attendance is free for GVGBC members and $10 for non members. Register Here